Read Time: 3.5 Min 

Most people fail when they first start trading.

A list of reasons why they fail is exhaustive:

• They fail to properly define a loss

• They fail to acknowledge that they could be wrong

• Not liquidating a trade when you know you should

• Revenge trading as if you were trying to get back at the market

The list goes on and on.

Fortunately, most if not all of these problems stem from one common issue among 99% of all people which can be resolved.

That is the failure to really understand the dynamics of goal setting so you can stay focused on what you want - not what you fear.

If I were to start trading from scratch tomorrow, I would want to understand these three things.

First: The extent to which we fulfill our needs and achieve our goals is, first, a function of being able to recognize our needs and formulate our goals.

Sounds simple right? It's not.

From birth, we have a natural sense of curiosity and attraction that are very powerful inner forces.

These forces create a need or put us in a state of imbalance with our external environment until the needs are satisfied.

Unfortunately though, when we feel this sense of attraction to certain activities, people, places, or things it is difficult to formulate any plans because of the other inner forces like beliefs, memories, and associations that are in conflict.

We need to understand the relationship between what we need or feel very attracted to and what essentially says no to us.

What we need to understand is that out of everything that we intend to do, some of these intentions will be supported by our internal beliefs, memories, and associations and some will not.

When there is support, our efforts will feel effortless because there is no conflict.

However, if our intentions are not in harmony with our beliefs then the doing becomes a struggle.

The best way to overcome this issue is awareness. Awareness shines a light on the limiting beliefs, memories, and associations that block you from seeing clearly what it is you need to do next.

Example: Let's say that someone who smokes decides that they want to quit smoking because it's a bad habit.

The intent is to express himself as a non-smoker. However, after his last cigarette, his belief in being a smoker will surface and sabotage his good intentions making him want a cigarette.

What we have is a classic conflict between his intentions and other internal beliefs (I am a smoker) that are more deeply engrained than the new belief that he wants to associate with (I am a non-smoker).

One naturally has more energy than the other because it's been around longer.

Awareness of this deep-seated belief (I am a smoker) might allow this person to seek out hypnotherapy or to change his environment so as not to trigger the craving.

A trader might have a belief that making a lot of money takes hard work.

This belief could be in direct conflict with making money in the markets which require only a click of a button. This belief could subconsciously sabotage a trader's results if not completely aware of it.

Any differences between what we wanted, expected, or desired that is different from what we got is a good indication of what we haven't learned, what we need to know, or that we don't have the appropriate skills.

Awareness is the first step.

Second: The extent to which we fulfill our needs and achieve our goals is a function of the degree to which we understand how we interact with the environment around us.

Where many go wrong with this is that they fail to include as a factor our inability to realize objectively that what we wanted may not be available, to begin with, or in the time frame we wanted or needed, and we didn't have the mental framework to know the difference ahead of time.

We also have to consider that what we wanted was available and that we just haven't learned what we need to know to perceive it.

Implicit in this should also be the understanding that everything around us is always changing whether we understand it or not making what we know obsolete at some point.

For example, the chair that you are sitting in is constantly changing. The molecules in the chair are breaking down and eventually it will fail and you will question its ability to do its job.

Also, information is growing at such a rapid rate making it impossible to keep up. Thanks to the internet information doubles every 72 hours.

With our external environment changing so fast, how can our internal conflicting beliefs keep up?

On the one hand, we have powerful inner forces of curiosity and attraction moving us closer to what we want and on the other hand, we have internal beliefs, memories, and associations that may conflict with that.

Since we have to interact with the outside environment in order to fulfill our needs and achieve our goals, the key to doing so is to stay in a constant state of learning.

Third: The extent to which we fulfill our needs and achieve our goals is a function of the skill sets that we have developed to interact with that environment and our ability to execute those skills.

To stay in a constant state of learning we need to learn to adapt. To adapt we need to learn some mental techniques to upgrade the limiting beliefs that prevent us from getting what we want.

By consciously adapting, we are making ourselves available to learn how to fulfill our needs and achieve our goals in increasingly satisfying ways.

To adapt we need to not resist learning and change and change our assumptions.

• The first assumption is that we haven't learned everything there is to know.

• The second assumption is what we have learned already either through curiosity or outside force may not serve us anymore.

• The third assumption is that what we may need to know in order to experience more satisfaction will often have to replace completely what we already think we know.

TLDR Key Takeaway: Anything less than a feeling of satisfaction from our interaction with the outside world is an indication that we need to learn something. 

Whenever you're ready, there are 3 other ways I can help you:  

1. If you are just getting started in trading, then you need a framework for operating in the current market. I recommend one of my affordable courses: 

The Art of Trading Workshop - Short Selling Mastery**:**  A multi-step system for making money in the stock market selling short.

2. Want access to a growing community and daily expert guidance on the markets? 

Join my private Discord Community with plenty of free content and premium services like weekly watchlists, trader chat, and my model stock portfolio. 

2. If you are looking for an excellent freebie, then download one of my free guides

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